‘Tis the season for furry little animals
Spring is swiftly approaching and with the warm change of weather comes another annual springtime event. Baby Animal Days, which has been running for more than 25 years, will take place April 7-9 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the American West Heritage Center. Each year this event brings baby animals, American history, demonstrations, vendors and pony and train rides to Cache Valley.
Nelda Ault, education manager for the American West Heritage Center, said Baby Animal days is “a festival that celebrates springtime through giving people a chance to pet and hold baby farm animals, learn about the history of the American West and come together as a community that remembers its agricultural past.”
Ault is responsible for the history education at Baby Animal Days. She will be running a historical treasure hunt and an art project booth, which will provide information about summer camp programs.
“Everyone at the center contributes by doing the heavy lifting, fence building and other physical labor required to put on this event,” she said.
All staff members work hard for this event, as its proceeds provide funding for all events for the rest of the year, Megan Darrington, True Blue Communication account manager said.
Darrington has been helping with the PR for Baby Animal Days since January.
“Our team has been working incredibly hard on reaching the USU student demographic, The SLC demographic and elementary school students,” she said.
“Baby Animal Days is the biggest annual festival in Cache Valley. We have hundreds of different baby farm animals, food vendors, historical reenactments including a candy cannon, outdoor adventure games and much more,” Darrington said.
Darrington said the American West Heritage Center strives to provide educational and entertainment events for the community throughout the year.
“Utah State is a stakeholder, so it is directly tied to USU, which is helpful,” Darrington said. “It’s a vital organization.”
She said her main goal was to get USU students involved and increase awareness of the American West Heritage Center.
Ault said this event allows the community to ignore their technological gadgets and turn to something real.
“As fewer families have access to farms, fewer families understand what it’s like to depend on hard physical labor, the weather and animals for their livelihood,” she said. “Families can learn about the fragility of little chicks and the relationship between mother sheep and their lambs, all within the context of Utah’s history.”
Ault said the community can enjoy many aspects of the event.
“Not only are there animals to touch and see, there are a lot of fun activities including the Lil’ Buckaroo Rodeo, food and craft vendors who all have to have some kind of tie to the history of this area, non-profit organizations with presentations and activities, stage performances by local musicians, storytellers and animal tellers,” she said.
She said they have living history demonstrations, which is what they do best. There will also be wood burning stove cooking, horse farming, sheep-shearing by hand, woodworking and blacksmithing.
Ault said this event provides a unique experience.
“It’s one thing to hold a chick in the springtime and it’s quite another to hold a chick while learning about the importance of animals on a farm in 1917 Utah, about the chores family members would have done without the aid of modern conveniences and about the relationship between people and their food supply.
“Baby Animal Days places the joy of baby animals in the springtime in the context of Utah’s history and creates connections between the present and the past,” she said.
The American West Heritage center has a mission to celebrate and teach about the history of the American West that took place during the years 1820-1920, Ault said.
“We have thousands of school kids who come by for field trips annually. Each of our festivals and special events preserve historical skills and knowledge through presentation to the public,” Ault said.
Tickets are available for $8 for adults, $7 for students, military members and seniors and $6 for kids age 3-11.
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